Xpel-trained installers, Bill DeBever (left) and Jesus Dominguez. hang the largest piece of the Xpel Ultimate "bumper kit" on the V-Net's ATS-V project. This part of the installation requires two people. Image: Author.

Product Review: Xpel Ultimate Paint Protection Film

I think oldskool auto bras, no matter what the design, material or color, are ugly, especially when they’ve worked loose to flap in the wind. Another reason I’ve never liked them is they trap dirt. Because it’s impossible to keep a bra from moving, the dirt moves, too, and scratches the paint. For that reason, I used to live with braless front ends figuring that chips from tiny stones and other road debris were the lesser of two evils.

Then, about a dozen years ago, I discovered automotive paint protection film (PPF) and tried it on the front end of a Corvette. During my initial research, I learned PPF had been around for over a decade. It’s an adhesive-backed, clear, polyurethane film originally developed by 3M for the leading edges of helicopter rotor blades to improve their durability during operations in desert areas. The product, then known as “Scotchcal,” earned its stripes” back in 1991, during the Gulf War. It decreased the erosion and impact damage to rotor blades done by dust, sand, dirt and rocks. It saved the military a boatload of money because rotors last longer with this urethane film on them.

An early automotive PPF application was on the deck lid of early-’90s Corvette Convertibles. Since then, GM and other car companies have applied urethane film to parts of vehicle bodies prone to abrasion and impact damage. It’s not known who first used PPF as a “clear bra” on the entire front end of a car, but the market for this idea grew quickly in the early-’00s after 3M and the other PPF maker, Xpel Technologies Corporation of San Antonio, Texas, developed software which could control “cutting plotters” which are, basically, computer plotters set-up to cut urethane film rather than print on paper. The two companies, also, supplied vehicle-specific patterns for the cutting plotters which their dealers could download from the companies’ web sites. Computer-controlled cutting of the film reduced the cost of PPF such that it could be used to protect large portions of a vehicle’s bodywork and become a profitable automotive aftermarket product.

A major enabler of the move to make PPF clear bras affordable was the development of “cutting plotters” which make cutting precisely shaped sections of film quick and easy. Image: Author.

The other key development which allowed PPF to be marketed cheaply was comprehensive libraries of “patterns” which are downloadable from Xpel’s dealer web site. Image: Author.

In recent years, some dealers who sold and installed 3Ms PPF were dissatisfied with its marketing and its dealer support system. That provided an opening for competitor, Xpel, which had a product that was as good or better and backed that up with a better marketing program and stronger dealer support. The result has been wide acceptance of Xpel’s “Ultimate”, “Xtreme”, “Stealth” and “Armor” film lines by both PPF dealer/installers and enthusiasts.

New Cadillac Customers Love Xpel

Since then, Xpel has taken an increasing large part of the PPF market. Not only are car enthusiast end-users moving to Xpel but so is the new car business. Cadillac V-Net sponsor, MacMulkin Chevrolet-Cadillac. Located in Nashua, New Hampshire, MacMulkin sells a lot of -V’s. 85% of them go out the door with Xpel paint protection film. MacMulkin’s Xpel Installer Automotive Elegance in nearby Stoneham

We sat down to talk with with Mark Makarewicz, V-Series Sales Manager at MacMulkin, for a better understanding of why the dealership installs Xpel on the majority of Cadillac Vs it sells.

Cadillac V-Net: Why did you switch paint protection film brands from the previous one you had been using?
Mark Makarewicz: We switched from 3M to Xpel due to the demand by our clientele to offer the best products available to protect their vehicles.

V-Net: Does Automotive Elegance perform the Xpel Ultimate installations on-site? How often is Automotive Elegance there doing your PPF work?
MM: All installs are done on the third floor of our showroom where cars are kept prior to delivery. They are here very frequently.

V-Net: What selling points do you tout when encouraging your customers to add Xpel to their vehicle purchase?
MM: We just explain how the product keeps the car looking brand new and has the 10 year warranty against yellowing lifting or cracking.

V-Net: Do V-series owners seem willing to invest in Xpel Ultimate PPF?
MM: We close near 80-90% of our customers on Xpel. Plus, with V’s, a lot of those customers buy a full wrap, which is everything but the roof. Resale is one of the other key points we explain to our customers.

CAC: When customers are ordering their new V either via phone or online and you’re shipping the car to them, how do you encourage them to opt for the Xpel?
MM: Our customers take our word for it when we say they should get PPF on their car especially that customers in the south drive their car much more. We always insist it be done prior to the car leaving our dealership. We provide documentation to the customer either in-person or via email showing the different packages we offer and what parts of the car are protected.

CAC: Do what do you attribute your success in being so successful with sales of Xpel Ultimate?
MM: The product truly does sell itself. We show customers our vehicles we have with it on, and they understand the importance of PPF.

Techside of Xpel

Image: Xpel Technologies Corporation.

Xpel Ultimate Paint Protection Film is a three-layer sandwich consisting of: 1) a 0.5-mil elastomeric polymer, clear coat which, because of its low surface energy, resists stains and contamination and, because of its “self-healing” property, eliminates small surface scratches, 2) a 6.0-mil polyurethane core formulated to have flexibility and memory when stretched and 3) a 1.6-mil, acrylic copolymer adhesive formulated to not only “stick” well to automotive finishes but to, also, have rework and remove ability. Ultimate is manufactured with a 3-mil, peel-off backing.

When applied to exterior surfaces of a vehicle, Xpel Ultimate improves the resistance of those surfaces to damage from: rubber particles, insects and fuel or oil spray and, most importantly, impacts of small stones or other debris. Because the urethane-based, clear coating is capable of impact absorption, small stones do not leave marks and even bigger ones will leave less of a mark than they would on an unprotected surface.

Ultimate PPF is resistant to: weak acids, most solvents, gasoline and oil and is thermally stable up to 176°F. Illustrating Ultimate’s robust surface is a video on Xpel’s YouTube channel in which the hood of an Audi A8, to which Ultimate is applied, is marked with a black Sharpie then stained with a raw egg. After a period in the sun, the Sharpie and egg wipe off easily. While the production of this video is amateurish and there’s no sound, it illustrates convincingly how resistant Xpel Ultimate is to surface contaminants.

Technical information supplied to us by Xpel states Ultimate’s shrinkage is rated less than 0.1%. Ultimate is immune to weathering for at least a year and up to two years. The data Xpel uses to support this claim was derived from two, outdoor “weathering” tests. The first was for a year with the sun at 45° which is said to be typical of Arizona. The second was for two years with with the sun at a 5° angle, said to be typical of southern Florida. With either test, there was no more than 2.0-dE change in color. “dE” is a unit of measure in a “color space” system commonly used by the industry to quantify changes in color. In that system, 2.0 is a small color shift which might be noticeable on a light-colored surface. In a practical sense, Xpel’s dE will be less than that of a dye-colored, fabric car bra over the same length of time.

Xpel backs Ultimate with a 10-year, limited warranty against defects such as yellowing, staining, cracking, blistering and delaminating. This warranty does not cover normal wear and tear, road debris impact, accidents, collisions or intentional damage of any kind. This warranty, in most cases, covers the labor to install replacement film.

With, Xpel products, or any PPF for that matter, when installed to a portion of a large, relatively flat surface, such as the front ⅓ of a hood, like we did on the V-Net’s ATS-V test car, the edge of the film may be visible from certain angles and in certain lighting. I have never found this quality to be objectionable and, in fact, with Xpel Ultimate, compared to previous installations of 3M Scotchgard, these lines are not as noticeable.

Large sections of film, typical of most cars’ and trucks’ front end kits require two people for installation. Shown here, Is Bill DeBever (right) applying the Xpel “secret sauce” which makes repositioning the film during installation possible. Knowing how to mix it and how much to use is one of the “tricks” Xpel factory-trained installers learn. Image: Author.

One of the reasons an Xpel installation, such as what we did with our ATS-V, takes so long is the time consuming nature of applying large sections of film, getting it positioned properly, then making sure any air between the film and the exterior surface of the car is removed. Image: Author.

Some paint protection film manufacturers sell their product to end-users. In fact, Xpel markets its entry-level, “Xtreme” brand paint protection kits on-line. Our advice to those interested in do-it-yourself PPF is: consider that carefully. In the last several years, we’ve had five film installations on different cars, three with Transhine Auto Detailing in Whittier, California and two with other dealers. After observing the process a number of times, in most instances, we do not think paint protection film installation lends itself to DIYers. This is not to say that non-professionals can’t install the film–they can, but it takes training, experience and the right tools to complete the task. An Xpel Ultimate installation on an ATS-V or a CTS-V takes about six hours for a professional installer, like Transhine’s Bill DeBever, who has years of experience with PPF. Xpel requires its dealers to undergo training at Xpel’s headquarters in Texas. At “PPF School” new Xpel dealers learn all the ‘tricks” some of which are, where to start application of a section of film, how to reposition film which you just installed wrong, how to get the film to adhere to compound curves and sharp edges and when and how to use heat during an installation. If you don’t know those tricks, you can ruin hundreds of dollars worth of film. For that reason, we agree with Xpel and Transhine: unless you have the correct tools, proper cleaning solutions, proper surface preparation solutions and experience applying adhesive films to surfaces with complex shapes; leave installing paint protection film to professionals.

A new trend in paint protection film installations are large sections of film which fold around the edge of the panel rather than extending only to the edge of the panel. Image: Author.

Another skill Xpel installers learn during factory training is when and how to use a heat gun to enhance the film’s time to cure. Image: Author.

Xpel Ultimate worked quite well on the V-Net’s ATS-V. The biggest difference between Ultimate and the products we’ve used previously, is the appearance of the top, “clear coat” layer of the film. Other PPFs we’ve installed have a sort of “orange peel” look and feel to their surfaces. Xpel Ultimate, has none of that. The surface is smooth–almost as if there is no film at all. We have several other vehicles with “clear bras” but, with Xpel Ultimate on the ATS-V, the edge line discussed above, while it is, indeed, visible, is harder to see. We’re not quite sure why, but we think it’s either that such edges are less visible on bright colored cars (our ATS-V is Chrystal White Tricoat) or that it’s the nature of Xpel Ultimate that those edges are less visible.

The V-Net’s ATS-V has a partial Xpel Ultimate hood kit installed. The edge of the film, is visible, but you have to know where to look. Image: Author.

Xpel Ultimate is available for all V-Series Cadillacs. For more information, see the Xpel web site. The Xpel web site, also, has a data base of Xpel-trained installers. If you are shopping the greater Los Angeles area for an experienced Xpel dealer, contact Transhine Auto Detailing, 15130 E. Whittier Bl., Whittier CA 90603. 562-693-5619, www.transhine.com If you are shopping for an Xpel Ultimate installer in New England, contact Automotive Elegance in Stoneham, Massachusetts 02180, www.clearbraboston.com

I think oldskool auto bras, no matter what the design, material or color, are ugly, especially when they've worked loose to flap in the wind. Another reason I've never liked them is they trap dirt. Because it's impossible to keep a bra from moving, the dirt moves, too, and scratches the paint. For that reason, I used to live with braless front ends figuring that chips from tiny stones and other road debris were the lesser of two evils. Then, about a dozen years ago, I discovered automotive paint protection film (PPF) and tried it on the front end of&hellip;

Review Overview

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Summary : Xpel Ultimate Paint Protection Film worked quite well on the V-Nets 2016 Cadillac ATS-V. The biggest difference between Ultimate and the products we've used previously, is the appearance of the top, "clear coat" layer of the film.

About Hib Halverson

Hib Halverson works in automotive media, both print and Internet as a technical writer. He is the Lead Product Evaluator for the V-Net and its sister web site, the Corvette Action Center. Hib owns two 2016 ATS-Vs, a six-speed Coupe and an eight-speed Sedan.